White Blank Page
by Ohori
Summary: They've done things a little backwards. A relationship is supposed to evolve from dating, to love and then sex. They've mastered the sex part but are they ready for the love and dating? The sequel to Stubborn Love.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Arrow cause if I did there would be no Laurel :) sorry, that was kinda mean, but I don't care :P

Author's Notes: Here is part 1 of the sequel to Stubborn Love. This story will be from Oliver and Felicity's POV. I hope you enjoy it.

I also have no beta, so all mistakes are mine :(

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Oliver would love to say that it was the sun peeking through the windows that woke him up, but if he were honest with himself he would admit that he had never fallen asleep in the first place. He was too busy studying the gorgeous blonde lying in his arms. There were many qualities to admire about Felicity Smoak – she was smart, funny, beautiful (although she didn't seem to understand the true extent of her beauty) but the attribute that Oliver appreciated the most was her moxie. She wasn't like any of the society women he had grown up with. She wasn't afraid to help a bleeding man who suddenly appeared in the back seat of her car, she wasn't afraid to chase after a man known for detonating bombs, and she didn't mind working nearly 24/7 at Queen Consolidated and then at night at the Foundry with him and Diggle. Even when he could be a real dick to her sometimes. She was completely unselfish and forgiving, so Oliver wondered what the hell she was doing with him.

He knew he had been fascinated by Felicity from the first moment they had met, and he also knew that she had found him appealing as well, but the arrogant part of Oliver that still lived on from his previous life didn't really pay attention to the mutual attraction as he had been used to women finding him attractive his whole life. But the more he had gotten to know Felicity the more he appreciated and desired her.

The colourful outfits that she wore to the lair everyday barely disguised the soft curves that drove him crazy. She always had her hair pulled up in a pony-tail, sometimes held in place by a pen or a pencil. The temptation to pluck them out and send the mass of blonde waves tumbling down her back always had his fingers twitching.

Lying together now, he narrowed his gaze to study her profile. The early morning sunlight streamed through the windows of her apartment and she was illuminated by a bright glow. She was breathtaking really. Once Oliver had realized that he had wanted her in his bed he could barely focus on anything else. He had pursued her using all of his old playboy skills, determined that she would be his. And now that they were demonstratively together he wondered if he had ruined things between them. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Felicity deserved a hell of a lot better than him. But the scary part was that he didn't think he would be able to give her up, maybe he was being selfish, but at this point in time he didn't care. That was the last thought that ran through Oliver's head before he finally succumbed to his exhaustion and fell asleep.

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Felicity had an unerring internal clock that woke her up every day at 7am to get ready for work, even if, like today, it was Saturday and she could sleep in. So it was no surprise that this particular Saturday was no different…except when she first awoke she didn't know where she was because there was a strong, warm body curved around her and deep, even breathing against the nape of her neck. She was curled up in a pair of strong arms, her shoulder to his chest, her back to his rock hard stomach. Suddenly the events of last night came rushing back to Felicity.

She had had sex with Oliver. A lot of sex.

She twisted her head to peak back at him, relieved to see that he was still sleeping. Felicity needed to get away from him for a minute. She was feeling a little overwhelmed. Everything she touched or smelled was overflowing with Oliver.

Gently she eased his arm off of her stomach and slipped out of bed. She looked around for her clothes but then remembered that they were still out in the living room next to the sofa where they had slept together. For the first time anyway.

Looking around, Felicity decided that she could probably use the bottom sheet that had been kicked to the end of the bed until she could get something out of her closet. Reaching down quietly, Felicity grabbed the piece of white linen and wrapped it around her body. As she turned to tip toe out of the room a sleep heavy voice spoke.

"What are you doing over there?"

"Not sneaking out that's for sure."

A soft smile spread across Oliver's face. "How can you sneak out of your own apartment?"

"I don't know and it's irrelevant because I wasn't sneaking out," Felicity replied while surreptitiously readjusting the sheet to make sure she was completely covered.

Unfortunately her readjusting didn't go unnoticed by Oliver. "You do realize that I have already seen everything that you're trying to cover, it's a bit like shutting the barn door after the horse has already escaped."

A bright crimson blush flooded Felicity's cheeks. "I am aware of that…but that was last night, when we were you know…"

"Having sex? We had a lot of sex last night. On the sofa. In the shower. In the hall when we couldn't make it to the bed." He continued.

"Yes," she hissed, "and that was a lot for me. I usually do my sex stuff in a bed."

"Sex stuff?" He laughed

"Oh, shut up! My point is that we're not doing, you know, that now, so I thought it would be more appropriate to not be naked."

"Felicity."

"Don't make fun of me okay, so I don't like prancing around naked, it's just another one of those little quirky things that makes me _me_," she finished.

"I know. I like your quirks. I like you." Oliver said.

A warming feeling spread throughout Felicity's body, which was a little bit ridiculous. The man she had spent the better part of a night having sex with just told her he liked her, but she was acting like they were in high school and he had just given her his lettermen jacket.

"Thank you." She said.

Oliver sat up a little in bed and extended a hand towards her. "Come back to bed, Felicity."

Felicity took a step towards Oliver when he spoke again, "Without the sheet, Felicity."

She hesitated for a moment; she was torn between old embarrassed Felicity and new Felicity. Old Felicity didn't stand around naked, while New Felicity had sex against a wall in the hallway of her apartment. After a minute of raging an internal battle against herself she came to a decision. She decided that new Felicity might be a lot of fun, especially if it meant more sex with Oliver. Slowly, she removed her hand and let the sheet flutter to the floor.

Oliver's gaze never looked away from the gorgeous woman standing in front of him. "I may not have said this to you last night, but your body…you're just beautiful."

"I'm not, but thanks." She replied shyly.

"Felicity, I'm looking at you right now and believe me when I say, you are wow." Oliver said sincerely.

Felicity simply smiled at the compliment and slide into bed next to Oliver. He wrapped his arms around her and they lay there for a few moments. Then, his hand drifted down to her side and he gently caressed her soft skin. Slowly he ran his hand down to cup her bum. He let his fingers slip between her legs but stopped abruptly when she hissed loudly.

He frowned. "You okay?" he asked.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly, "it's just been a little while for me and last night we had a lot of sex…" she laughed nervously.

He brushed his lips against her hair. "Do you want me to kiss it better...?"

She raised her head to look back at him. "Maybe later," she smiled.

They laid together in silence for a few more moments before Oliver spoke again. "Do you regret last night?"

Instantly she felt tension flood her body, Felicity could honestly say she didn't regret anything, even if this was just a one time (or more accurately a one night) thing she would never regret knowing exactly what it felt like to be touched and kissed by Oliver Queen, even if he didn't feel the same way.

"No," she whispered.

"Good. I don't regret it either. I was kinda worried that maybe I freaked you out a little with coming on too strong and all that talk about my fantasies..." he trailed off.

Deciding that since she was now New Felicity, she should at least be honest with him considering he had told her about his favourite sexual fantasies involving her. "I have fantasies too. I mean fantasies about you. About you and me."

"Really?" He said as a huge grin broke out on his face. "Please, do tell."

She fought the urge to roll her eyes at his puppy-dog eagerness, "It usually happens when we're at the lair."

"Okay." He said neutrally.

"I know it's not the most exciting location, I mean I bet you have had sex in like a million exotic places, it would probably be sexier if I said it happened under a waterfall or in a hot air balloon or anything, but I guess cause I spend a lot of time in the hood lair that it makes the most sense. Anyway." She continued, "In my fantasy I'm working at the computer, I'm been at it all night so I stand up to stretch my back, so I'm leaning over the desk slightly and then you come in to ask me about any updates to the newest name I'm researching…and I'm still bending over, looking at the screen, and you come up behind me, pull up my skirt, spread my legs, and...you know..." she trailed off.

"Really?"

"You usually do it fast and hard."

"Really?" he asked in a heavy voice.

"Very hard. And we talk about the names of the list while you...you know."

"So we're working while we...?" he asked for clarification.

"Yes."

"Okay."

There was a long silence and she shifted a little. They were on their sides, facing each other, and pressed close enough that she could still feel the hard length of him against her thigh.

"I'm pretty sure that you owe me and by extension Starling City a huge apology," he said finally.

"What? Why?" she asked in confusion.

"Because I'm never going to be able to concentrate on training with you working at your desk in the basement without thinking about what you just told me."

She laughed. "I have other fantasies as well. There's one where I'm kneeling under your desk at Queen Consolidated..."

"No, no, I can't handle any more." He laughed.

"It's the end of the day," she continued mischievously, "and you really need to relax before you go out on your nightly Hood patrol so I mmmph..."

Oliver leaned over and silenced her with a long, deep kiss. His hands tangled in her long blonde hair and her body strained towards his. Eventually they broke apart, panting heavily.

Oliver ran his hand across her cheeks and looked directly into her eyes before speaking. "Look, I don't know exactly what this is and neither do you, but I'd like to try and figure it out."

Felicity gazed back into Oliver's eyes, "I'd like that too." She replied earnestly.

XxxxxxxxxX

TBC…

So I thought I would provide a little fluff before we get to the main plot of the story. Please tell me what you think. I have tried to reply to all the reviews for Stubborn Love through a PM. If I missed you, I am so sorry; I do appreciate every review I get, good, bad or ugly.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Arrow or any of its characters:

Author's Notes: Here is part 2; I know this may sound strange but I'm nervous because this is my first story that I am actually going to include a real plot besides examining the relationship between the main couple. Let's see how it goes.

Oh, I have kept the overall rating as T, but maybe this chapter is M or maybe not. I am not good at judging these things. :0)

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Although it was Saturday, Felicity was in her usual place in the basement of Verdant, it wasn't like The Hood could take a day off, so it was important that she used whatever free time she had to continue investigating names on the list. She sat at her desk in the lair typing away, focused intently on the task at hand. She definitely wasn't trying to seem so preoccupied in her work that when Oliver finally appeared she wouldn't turn into a bright red tomato thinking back to everything that had happened last night. Yeah, definitely not that.

Okay, who was she kidding? She was super nervous. She was playing with her hair, bouncing her feet under the desk. If she were honest with herself, most of her anxiety came from not knowing exactly which version of Oliver was going to walk through that door. While she certainly wasn't expecting (nor did she want) some love sick version of Oliver spouting romantic drivel, she also definitely couldn't handle Oliver resorting back to the curt, emotionless, jerk barking orders at her either. Although they had talked about taking this relationship slowly, just letting things play out naturally, she was afraid Oliver had changed his mind since he had left her apartment.

Not that she could blame him. He had a lot going on in his life to put it kindly. Since his return from the island he had been constantly juggling all these different roles. He was the club owner, socialite playboy, devoted son and brother, and finally The Hood. She wondered how he didn't get confused as to who he really was. Did he even know anymore? How many parts could one man portray? Felicity hoped that the Oliver she saw everyday in the basement, the Oliver that let her ramble but didn't make fun of her, the Oliver that had kissed her last night was the real version of him. Because she really liked that version of him.

To add to her anxiety, there was still the insecure part of Felicity that wondered what Oliver saw in her. Her subconscious openly mocked her, 'you're a silly, quirky girl; men don't want to settle down with silly and quirky.'

But there was also a part of Felicity that was flattered, what woman wouldn't be flattered to have such an attractive man want her. But, while Felicity might not have a lot of experience with men even she knew that sex couldn't be the basis for a real relationship. Eventually the spark would fade and if there wasn't a foundation of truth and trust present then the relationship was doomed to fail. The question was would Oliver let her in? Would he let her see the real him? Would they even stand a chance if he never let her know the real Oliver Queen?

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With the clang of the door signaling his entry, Oliver walked into the foundry. Felicity forced herself to exhale slowly and evenly, to try and refocus on her computer work, but his eyes were already on her, commanding all of her attention. She was reminded of a big cat, or some other kind of predator stalking its prey. Although the city knew him as a happy-go-lucky playboy, the Oliver Felicity saw had a hard face that suggested he wasn't easily amused. His gaze, which had been studying Felicity since he entered the room, followed the smooth arch of her neck down to the open V of her blouse. His eyes continued their journey down over her firm and well shaped breasts. She watched as his eyes traced their contours and a flicker of desire (perhaps remembering last night?) flashed in his eyes.

Before he had walked into the lair, Oliver had taken some time to prepare himself before he saw her. He wished he could stop thinking about her for more than a minute, but his mind kept wandering back to how she had felt in his arms last night. He tried to compartmentalize his feelings for her, but they refused to remain tucked away -they were untamed and hungry. Which was why he needed to remain in control. He couldn't let her see the real him, not the dark inner part of him who had been left a misshapen shell of a man filled with bitter angry urges. He wasn't the same man he had been 5 years ago. He was someone new – someone with all the youthful arrogance gone and in his place was a man overcome with an overwhelming need for revenge and a body covered in battle scars, while Felicity was the epitome of generosity and warmth. He simply didn't deserve her.

Felicity turned her head to the side and offered a small, "Hey."

"Hey." Oliver returned her greeting. "Any luck on that research?"

Work. That was neutral territory that wasn't going to get him in trouble, he thought lightly.

"It's slow. And I don't mean I'm having trouble finding the information, I mean the computer is working slow, it's like time is moving backwards."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I had workers upstairs sound proofing the club. According to Detective Lance, there have been numerous complaints from the public about the late night noise coming from the club."

"What public? We're in an abandoned factory surrounded by other abandoned factories."

"I know. It's just the detective being an ass, but I don't want him coming to the club more than he has to, so the easiest thing to do was comply with the order and add more sound proofing. I guess when they were working they must have done something to the wiring which is now affecting the computers. Can you fix it?"

"Can I fix it? Does The Doctor belong with Rose?" She asked incredulously.

"I have no idea what you've talking about, but I assume the answer is, yes."

"I really need to tie you down and make you catch up on all the great TV you missed when you were trapped on that island."

"You can tie me down and make me do whatever you want, Felicity." He supplied dryly.

A soft blush flooded her face, "Anyway, my point is I may be inept at a lot of things, like interacting with people, but I have yet to see a computer system I couldn't master."

"Thanks. So did you find that information?"

"Oh, yeah. I got it. Cliff Gardner: slumlord and a real piece of work. He owns four buildings in the Glades. Doesn't maintain any of them, he refuses to turn the air conditioning on in the summer so he can save himself some money and if any of the tenants complain he has this little group of local hoodlums that work for him threaten them. But the worst thing is that he also turns the heat off in the winter, which directly resulted in the death of two innocents babies who just didn't have the immune system or body fat to survive the harsh conditions. I say put the fear of The Hood in him."

"Sounds like a plan. What's his security detail like?"

"A bunch of local punks carrying illegal guns. But the police don't really send too many patrol cars into that area so you should be able to Hood in and Hood out without any problems."

"Punks? Hoodlums? Are we stuck in a 1950s crime novel?"

"Well, you don't want the fuzz to come with their heaters to break up the rumble?"

"What are you talking about?" A perplexed Oliver asked.

"Did you seriously not read one single book in school? It's a line from The Outsiders."

"No, I didn't read that one. Although I do remember reading a book about a dog named spot, I think he was running somewhere, and then he was jumping over something..." Oliver trailed off.

"Ha," Felicity laughed. "You just made a funny."

At the light that entered Felicity's eyes and the genuine smile on her face, Oliver promised himself that he would try to make as many jokes as possible if it meant she would look at him like that again.

"So I'll head over to see Cliff Gardner and see if The Hood can't convince him to sell his buildings to a more responsible owner. This shouldn't take too long, but don't feel like you have to wait around here all night."

"Oh, sure." Felicity felt a pang of disappointment, not that Oliver and her had made any plans, but she had kind of expected to spend a little time with him tonight. "Well, good luck and try not to get yourself killed."

"Your concern for my well being warms my heart." He replied sarcastically.

Oliver turned to exit the basement when he stopped suddenly. "So are you going to be at your apartment later?"

"Yeah," she replied slowly.

"So, maybe when I'm done I can stop by your place?"

"Yeah, that sounds good." She answered with a large smile on her face.

"Okay, see you later."

XxxxxxxxxxX

Felicity had just finished upgrading the computer system when the opening of the basement door startled her. She looked up and was surprised to see Oliver standing there.

"What are you doing back so soon? You've been gone for less than an hour. What happened?"

"He's dead." Oliver replied.

"What? But I thought…You killed him?" Felicity asked in disbelief. She felt a knot form in her stomach. While she would never be comfortable with the violent nature of Oliver's work, she understood that sometimes things got out of hand and lives were lost, but she couldn't see how a middle-aged, balding, chubby slumlord deserved an arrow to the heart.

"I didn't kill him. He was already dead when I got there. A bullet to the head." Oliver explained evenly.

"Oh, that's okay then," Felicity felt the knot in her stomach unwind.

At the raise of Oliver's eyebrows, Felicity reconsidered what she had just said. "Not that I'm happy that he's dead, just that, you know, you didn't kill him. Yippee for not murdering anyone tonight," Felicity gave a little fist pump in the air.

Oliver decided to have pity on her and ignored the ramblings that had just come out of her mouth. "Diggle went over to see Carly. Do you want to go over there and get something to eat?" He paused then continued, "Then we can go back to your place?"

"Sounds good. Just let me clean up my desk a little."

"No problem. I'm going to have a quick shower and I'll be back in 10 minutes." Oliver walked towards the bathroom area while Felicity began tidying up her work station.

True to his word, Oliver promptly returned in 10 minutes only to find Felicity bent over at her computer desk cleaning up the papers and folders scattered around her work area.

"Jesus…" he said, coming up behind her and taking hold of her hips.

"Oliver?" she asked, trying to stand up.

"No." His hand pressed down on the small of her back, keeping her bent over. "Hands on the desk."

Her mouth dropped open in surprise, she had told him about this fantasy but she never actually believed it would happen. "Are you serious, Oliver?"

He ground his erection against her for emphasis. Then he leaned forward and wrapped an arm around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder. "It only seems fair. I got to live out one of my fantasies last night, so tonight it is your turn. Only if you want to, Felicity. The choice is yours."

Instead of answering with words, Felicity simply raised her skirt, hiking it up until it bunched around her hips.

Immediately, his large hands drifted up and down her thighs, caressing her impossibly soft skin until he reached the juncture between her thighs and began stroking her cleft. After a moment she moaned her appreciation.

"So soft…" He reached up and pulled her underwear down her legs. When he returned to her sex he was pleased to find her thighs already slick with arousal. Gently he slipped a finger inside her. When her moans became louder and more insistent, he slowly added another finger. She was tight around him and he shifted his hand slightly, setting up a rocking motion that helped him ease into her. The base of his hand rubbed against her and she moaned again, grinding her hips. He ran his free hand from her thigh up along her waist to her shoulder, brushing his fingers across one breast as he went. Oliver trailed his fingers around her breastbone, and then swirled around and around, closer and closer, until he brushed across her left breast. He did the same with her other breast, touching, caressing, until she was gasping for air.

His hands worked together to set up a rhythm between her throbbing sex and her breasts. Soon she was undulating and squirming while making these sexy little mewing noises. Her hands were pressed against the desk so tightly that they were starting to ache, but she needed the support so that she could push back against his hand between her thighs.

"Felicity," he leaned over her and whispered against her ear. He increased the pace of his movements as she whimpered.

"Felicity," he murmured again in a low voice, his tongue found the soft skin of her throat and she made more frantic noises. Spurred on by the intoxicating sounds coming from her, Oliver started moving his fingers a little faster. And just when she was so close… he stepped back from her to spread her legs further apart, so that her torso was parallel to the floor.

The sound of him lowering the zipper of his jeans sent a shudder of anticipation through her body. She couldn't control the groan that escaped from her throat or the flood of wetness between her legs. She wondered if she was turning into a sex addict. Sex two days in a row was a new record for her. Yet, if she was going to embrace this New Felicity, she imagined there would be a lot more days filled with sex in her future. Any further thoughts were erased from Felicity's head as Oliver quickly returned his fingers back into her. He rocked against her again, easing them deep.

Then he took a moment to enjoy the sight of her, so gorgeous, so eager and ready for him, spread for him, so trusting. In a ragged voice, he told her, "You are so beautiful."

"Did you just call me beautiful?" she said trying to sound skeptical. But the words came out more giddy and aroused, than cynical.

"Yes, I did."

"You're trying to seduce me now, aren't we a little past that point?" Felicity said as she attempted to wave one hand in the air, while still holding onto the desk with the other.

"I'll never stop trying to seduce you, and no, there is never a point when seduction is not necessary." He spread her folds and set himself against her. "Ready?" he asked.

She was tense with anticipation but nodded her agreement.

Then he slid into her, as deep as he could go, pausing only to readjust her hips slightly before pulling out and pushing back in again. Once he felt her surround him fully, he couldn't hold back. He thrust into her, her hips undulating, her muscles tightening, her voice crying out his name.

All he could feel and hear was Felicity; the rest of the world simply didn't exist. At every stroke she pushed back to meet the thrust of his hips. He slammed into her, trapping her hips tightly with his hands so that he could find the best angle, the deepest stroke, until he was a mindless frenzy of motion.

At some point her cry signaling her orgasm penetrated his brain. The sound was a trigger for his own release; his wild thrusts increased in speed and soon he was spilling into her, collapsing against her, his mouth dry as he shouted his forceful climax.

"Oh my god," she managed to say as he slumped forward, catching the desk with his own hands for support. "Just how soundproof is this place?"

"Who knows?" he asked rhetorically.

"I have a feeling we'll find out if you get any more noise complaints courtesy of Detective Lance."

TBC….


	3. Chapter 3

After a quick trip to the bathroom in the basement, so Felicity could tidy herself up a little, Oliver and her headed over to the diner to meet up with Diggle and Carly.

When they entered the restaurant they spotted Diggle sitting by himself in one of the booths. They slide into the long vinyl seat opposite John.

"Damn it, they need to post," Diggle swore at the TV, referencing the basketball game he was watching.

Oliver turned his head to take a look at the game, "It doesn't matter, there is no way that Miami is going to beat the Spurs."

"Really? You sure about your team? Care to make things a little more interesting?"

"You know, every time I hear people talking about sports and one person says, 'Do you wanna make this more interesting', I always hope they are going to start talking about something else." Felicity interjected.

"Not a big sports fan, Felicity?"

"Well, basketball is okay, but baseball, all they do is stand around spitting and scratching themselves. And don't even get me started on soccer. That sport is so boring, I mean do the soccer players hug the guy who scored because they are all so happy that something finally happened? Anyway, I'm going to go say hi to Carly."

As Oliver watched Felicity leave the booth and head over to the counter to talk to Carly, Oliver could feel Diggle's eyes on him. When he turned back to look at John, a smirk was plastered all over his bodyguard's face.

"So. You and Felicity." The smirk still firmly in place.

"Me and Felicity what?" Oliver asked nonchalantly.

"You're together. Or at least you're sleeping together."

"What are you talking about?" Oliver didn't mind people knowing about him and Felicity but he was curious as to how Diggle figured it out so fast.

"I know the truth, Oliver."

"How?"

"I was in Afghanistan, Oliver. My job was to keep myself and my guys safe. The only way I could do that was to pay attention to everything around me. Nothing could be taken for granted. The smallest change in behaviour could mean a dead officer. A slight change in attitude could mean one of my officer's had taken a bribe and had gone over to the dark side. I had to become a master of observing human behaviour so I know when a relationship has changed. I'm not just your bodyguard; I had a life before you. A dangerous life where I had to make split second decisions based on my observations so I know that the relationship between you and Felicity has definitely changed."

"John, I didn't mean to -" Oliver began.

"Plus, I might have forgotten my jacket earlier and when I went back to the basement to get it I noticed that you and Felicity were….preoccupied."

Oliver scrubbed his hand over his face. "Jesus, Diggle. You can't let Felicity know that you saw anything. One, we just started this thing between us and second I don't want to hear another lecture about putting fish in the microwave at work."

"If that is code for something I really don't want to know." Diggle grimaced.

"What? No, it's not; it's just Felicity being… Felicity. Just don't say anything to her okay?"

"Please, I am going to have to wash my eyes with bleach for weeks to get the image of your white ass out of my head…while Felicity's ass is another story."

All humour left Oliver's face. His eyes turned cold and his voice was like ice. "Whatever you saw of Felicity you are going to forget. Do I make myself clear?"

"Jeez, it was just a joke, Oliver. A bad joke, but still a joke. Calm down. You know I don't think of Felicity that way. She's my friend, plus I'm with Carly."

"Yeah, okay." Oliver said, although the tension hadn't left his face.

Meanwhile on the other side of the diner Felicity was eager to catch up with Carly.

"Hey." Felicity greeted Carly with a wide smile.

"Hey. Long time no see. So?" Carly asked eagerly.

"So….what?"

"Don't so what me! I've been dying to know. What happened with you and Oliver? Did you say yes? Are you sleeping together?"

Felicity paused, even though she liked Carly she was unsure of what she should divulge.

"Come on, Felicity. Don't hold out on me now."

"Sorry, it's just that I don't normally talk about my sex business. Wow. That sounded like something a prostitute would say. I don't have a sex business. No one pays me for sex." Felicity clarified unnecessarily.

"Thanks for clearing that up," Carly laughed. "So you two…are together?"

Felicity paused again before answering, "Yeah, I guess so…"

"You sound unsure."

"No. I'm sure. We're together. We're just taking it slow, just seeing where things go, you know. Obviously being in a relationship with a billionaire playboy is new for me. I don't have a lot of experience, unlike Oliver…" She trailed off.

"Is that what's bothering you? The fact that Oliver has, um, been with so many women?"

"Kind of." Felicity conceded.

"Look. Here's how I see it. If I have a customer tell me that my burgers are the best in town, but he's never tried the food at other restaurants before it doesn't mean as much as a customer who has tried all different kinds of restaurants but chooses to come here for lunch every day because he knows that my place has the best food in the city. Do you get what I'm trying to say? Although now that I've said that I'm not too comfortable with comparing women to food. Wow, I'm a great role model for my daughter." Carly laughed nervously.

"Hey! You are a great role model. You are a single mom working your butt off. You are an entrepreneur and a great mom. I'm the one who is a walking cliché. I'm sleeping with my boss, okay so he's not technically my boss, but I work for his family and one day in the future he's going to take over the company so I'm sleeping with my future boss, so I'm not the best example of female empowerment."

"That's not true Felicity; you are a great role model for young girls. You work in a male dominated job and from what John has told me you are the best in your field so don't be so hard on yourself."

"So basically what we're saying is that both of us are awesome women." Felicity laughed.

"Exactly," Carly agreed.

Felicity gave with an encouraging pat to Carly's shoulder. "Thanks. But going back to what we were talking about before we got distracted by how amazing we both are, it's really not so much about all the women that Oliver has been with; it's one woman in particular."

"Laurel?"

"Laurel." Felicity confirmed.

"Honestly, I don't know too much about Oliver and Laurel, but Oliver has been back for a while now and he hasn't tried to restart things with Laurel. He picked you to begin a relationship with and that has to count for something."

_God I hope so_, Felicity thought to herself.

XxxxxxxxxxxX

**_The Next Night_**

"So tell me what you know." Oliver said.

"Okay, so initially the promoter, in this case Amy Calley paid out high returns to attract more investors, and to lure current investors into putting in additional money. Other investors begin to participate, leading to a cascade effect. The "return" to the initial investors is paid out of the investments of new entrants, and not out of profits. Often the high returns encourage investors to leave their money in the scheme, with the result that the promoter does not have to pay out very much to investors; she simply has to send them statements showing how much they have earned. This maintains the deception that the scheme is a fund with high returns. Promoters also try to minimize withdrawals by offering new plans to investors, often where money is frozen for a longer period of time, in exchange for higher returns. The promoter sees new cash flows as investors are told they cannot transfer money from the first plan to the second because all their money has been spent. It is the perfect Ponzi Scheme."

Felicity was trying her hardest to concentrate on providing Oliver with all of the salient details but inside she was freaking out because she was out with Oliver. On a date. A real date. Not a quick bite at the diner, but an honest to goodness date where the restaurant had a real maître-de and cloth napkins. Oliver was dressed in a perfectly tailored suit, which made him look almost as good as when he was shirtless training in the basement. God, what was it about men and suits? For her part, Felicity was wearing the same gold dress she wore to the charity auction a few months ago. Hopefully this night wouldn't end with another bomb around her neck.

"I think that it would make sense for Oliver Queen to investigate such an attractive investment. I should pay Amy Calley a visit."

"That sounds like a solid plan, that way you can snoop around her office before you go in all arrows-a-blazing."

"I don't snoop, Felicity, this is not Scooby Doo. I carefully search and investigate. Although shooting arrows on fire does sound like fun."

"First, it would be awesome if we were like Scooby Doo. Second, ha, you're making jokes," Felicity smiled widely, "I like it when you're not so broody, not that you're not incredibly sexy when you are all angsty and brooding, but I like watching you smile too."

"So, I'm incredibly sexy?" Oliver asked.

"Of all the things I just said, that was the only part that that caught your attention?" Felicity teased.

Felicity and Oliver simply smiled at each other until Felicity noticed that Oliver's eyes weren't on her anymore but rather were looking at something or someone over her right shoulder. Felicity turned her head slightly to see what had captured Oliver's attention when her breath caught in her throat.

_Laurel. _

_God that woman was so beautiful. And nice. Why did she have to be beautiful and nice? Shouldn't beautiful people all be assholes to balance the beautiful part? It's just not fair that the love of Oliver's life was a beautiful and nice person. How was she supposed to compete with that?_

"I should probably go say 'hi'." Oliver commented tersely, rising from the table.

"Yeah, that would be the polite thing," Felicity replied weakly while staring at the white linen covering the table.

Felicity followed Oliver as he walked over to the beautiful brunette. She watched Oliver give Laurel his complete attention while he whispered softly to her in a gaze so intimate, it excluded the whole world even though they were in the middle of a crowded restaurant.

Felicity continued to watch the pair as they exchanged whispered words.

"Have you decided or do you need another few minutes?" The waitress suddenly appeared.

A wave of sadness overcame Felicity, who simply stared at the waitress before asking in a voice touched with melancholy that came from the heart, "What does it take to get a man to look at a woman the way he's looking at her?" Felicity indicated Oliver and Laurel with a wave of her hand.

"I wish I knew." The waitress answered.

"So do I…" Felicity whispered softly.

XxxxxxxxxxxX

The rest of the dinner passed in meaningless conversation. How was work? (_Great_) The weather's been nice recently (_Yeah, it's been so mild_). The club seems to be doing well (_Packed every night_) until mercifully the meal was over.

Once they stepped outside, Oliver reached into his jacket and pulled out his ringing cell phone. After a few minutes of tense conversation, he snapped the phone shut and placed it back in his pocket.

"Everything okay?" Felicity asked, adjusting her purse strap.

"Yeah, but I have to go….did you drive?" Oliver asked while standing in front of the restaurant.

"I took a taxi," Felicity said, looking straight ahead.

Oliver looked Felicity in the eyes. "Felicity, I'd take you home, but..."

"I'll just get a taxi." She cut him off and gave him the best fake smile that she could manage. "It's fine."

"Felicity…" Oliver began.

"It's fine. Really." She tucked a piece of blonde hair behind her ears. Of course, Oliver didn't want to come over. A night of meaningless sex couldn't compare with running into the love of your life in a crowded restaurant. She felt a well of tears build up in her eyes. She needed to get away from Oliver as quickly as possible before she embarrassed herself.

He touched her elbow and stepped closer to her. "I'll call you later."

"Sure." She said noncommittally and gave him one more fake smile. She quickly turned and walked away. She squeezed her eyes shut so tightly they started to burn but she simply refused to cry. She just kept repeating, _"I will not break down, I will not break down."_

By the time Felicity reached her apartment her emotions were under control. She shut the door behind her, threw her purse on the table and collapsed on the sofa. It was hard to believe that 48 hours earlier, in this exact spot, she had slept with Oliver for the first time. How could they have shared such an incredible experience together and the next night end with him walking away from her?

XxxxxxxxxxxX

Hours later peacefully asleep in bed, Felicity's eyes flew open when she heard a large banging noise coming from the hallway. Her first thought was that it must be Oliver, but no…he had somewhere he wanted or needed to be so that meant it had to be someone else…a someone else who had broken into her apartment. She lay in bed frozen, unsure of what to do…Should she call 911 or Diggle…should she call Oliver?

Should she hide under the covers like a scared little girl? Yeah, that seemed like a solid plan.

"Felicity?" A male voice whispered.

"Oliver!" She popped up in bed and threw the covers off. "You scared the crap out of me! I thought you were a burglar!"

He laughed. "So your plan was to hide under the covers?"

"Don't laugh at me!" She pouted.

He walked toward the bed and sat down. "I just want to repeat that your plan involved you hiding under the covers."

After the emotional evening she had just had she couldn't control the tears spilling down her cheeks. "You're an asshole, Oliver Queen."

"I've been called worse." He rubbed her back gently. "Hey, why are you crying?"

"You scared me; I thought I was going to have to fight off an intruder." _Also I thought you had gone to see Laurel._

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

She looked into his eyes. "I thought you had somewhere else you needed to be tonight."

Oliver wiped her tears away with his fingertips. "Yeah, there was a problem at the club with Thea and then I thought I would check on Amy Calley…I'll fill you in tomorrow, I don't want to talk about it tonight."

He leaned toward Felicity and kissed her tenderly. When she responded, he put his large hand on her back to pull her closer. He deepened the kiss for a few seconds, "Let's go to bed."

Felicity simply nodded in agreement.

TBC….

Okay, so honesty time, maybe it's cause the show is in reruns and there is no new inspiration but my interest in the story is fading (maybe yours is too…) I do have this whole thing outlined but every time I sit down to type it up, it's like pulling teeth. So my thought was that since I have been getting some PMs asking if I would be willing to write a purely smutty fic I thought I would open it up and ask you guys for any ideas for a smut piece that you have and maybe those ideas would serve as a source of inspiration for this story. Just a thought.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Notes: So this chapter will be rated M, also I tried to include more Oliver POV, which is difficult for me to write cause I'm not a guy and I'm still trying to figure how they think (if they do ) :)

I have also written a PWP piece called Dance With Me, please go check it out and tell me what you think, if enough people like it, I think I'll just add more PWP one shots to that story as a collection (although each individual fic won't actually be connected). Thanks for all the support.

XxxxxxxxxxX

Oliver gently closed the bathroom door and padded back over to the bed where Felicity lay peacefully sleeping. Sitting softly on the side of the bed Oliver lightly brushed his fingers across her forehead to push away the blonde hair that had fallen over her face. Her lips were slightly parted, plumping softly with each exhalation, unable to stop himself, Oliver ran the tip of his forefinger along the edges of her soft pink lips.

It was disconcerting to realize that the more he got to know this radiant, vivacious woman the more sure he became that he didn't deserve her. He had been an asshole last night, but he wasn't sure how to go about apologizing. He had been having a wonderful time at dinner with Felicity, laughing and joking, but when he saw Laurel it was as though he was transported back in time and he was drawn to her. He knew he had made a mistake upon his return to the table, Felicity had been quiet and withdrawn, there was this look in her eyes (not anger, that he could have dealt with) but a kind of disappointment and a sense of resignation, as though she wasn't surprised that she had been placed second to Laurel. He immediately had wanted to beg for forgiveness and explain his actions, but he didn't know how. How could he explain the knot of unease in his stomach when it came to Laurel when he didn't understand it himself?

He knew he wanted Laurel to be happy, she deserved happiness and he sincerely hoped she would find it one day, preferably with Tommy, but as long as the guy treated her well Oliver didn't care who he was because the one thing he was sure of was that he wasn't in love with Laurel anymore, but the problem was he had so many feelings of guilt tied up in his relationship with her that he simply couldn't walk away. He had betrayed her with her sister and there was a part of him that wondered, 'what if…' What if he hadn't had cheated? What if he hadn't had been trapped on that island? Would he and Laurel have moved in together? Would they have gotten married? Or would their young love have simply have run its course? There were so many questions and not enough answers.

Maybe he shouldn't have started this relationship with Felicity without the answers; maybe there were still some personality traits that he shared with the old Oliver because even though he knew to a certain degree that being with Felicity exposed her to a dangerous element he was too selfish to let her go. Maybe despite his ongoing work to become a better son, brother, friend, and savior of Starling City, fundamentally he was still an asshole because there was no way he could risk the chance of some other guy coming along and taking Felicity away from him. What if this other hypothetical guy didn't appreciate her? What if he looked at her and only saw a pretty blonde with a good figure and too much to say? What if he thought she was too quirky and urged her to keep her thoughts to herself? What if he used her body and gave her no pleasure in return. What if he ignored her? What if he didn't realize how special she was?

A small snort from Felicity jolted Oliver out of his thoughts. Turning back to watch her sleep, Oliver knew she wasn't some angel to put on a pedestal; the fact was she was just too real. She was a little quirky and babbled more than the average person. She wasn't perfect; yet; her oddness was a great part of her appeal and her teasing kept him from becoming too much of a brooding bastard.

Oliver sat alone in the darkness, lost in his thoughts. Here was the crux of the problem. _He liked her_. And he was uncomfortable with how much he liked her. He had been with a lot of women in his life, he wasn't ashamed of that per se since he was a different man now, but what he first realized when he began spending time with Felicity was not only was he attracted to her (that was a give in), he actually liked her as a person. Besides Laurel, he couldn't remember actually liking any of the women he had been with in the past. Maybe that made pre-island Oliver a horrible guy, sleeping with women he didn't like, but it was the truth.

Oliver shifted uncomfortable on the bed. He was so accustomed to suppressing his feelings, so focused on crossing names off his list and making Starling City a safer place that he wasn't used to this overpowering need to confide in a person, namely Felicity. It wasn't that he really wanted to talk about his experience on the island, those weren't particularly happy memories, it was simply that he wanted Felicity to know more about him, know more about his past. For the first time, maybe ever, he wanted to share a part of himself with another person, it mattered to him that she understood him, accepted him for who he had become.

Even worse, ever since they had started working together, Oliver's feelings had become a strange mix of wanting to protect her and wanting to be exactly the kind of guy she needed protection from, which absolutely scared the hell out of him.

XxxxxxxxxX

"So is everything set?"

"Yup, your personal assistant, that's was me by the way, called and made an appointment for 4pm, so all you have to do is walk in there and charm the pants off Amy Calley, and I mean the metaphorical pants not her literal pants, and find out more about this wonderful investment opportunity so we can get some solid evidence to prove that she is bilking the citizens of Starling City out of their hard earned money."

"Sounds good."

"Yes, and while you're gone I will continue my research on Colin Jacks, who so far looks like he is hard-core breaking every anti-trust law I can think of, but the great news is that he will be appearing at the Technology Convention for Industry Professionals at the Starling City Centre next week to promote his new malware. It is a private invite only event," Felicity explained

"Okay."

"Which is perfect," Felicity continued as though Oliver had never spoken, "because I know this brilliant IT specialist who could go as a representative of Queen Consolidated and check out the event and gather some useful information." Felicity turned back towards the computer screen, silently counting in her head. Ten…Nine…Eight…

"No."

"Seven," she said. "Your restraint is improving. It was nearly 4 seconds before you told me 'no' this time."

"No." He repeated, ignoring her quip.

"Why not?" Felicity pouted.

"Are you serious? Despite the fact that your idea of fighting off home intruders involves hiding under a blanket, I'm more concerned that the last two times you came out with me you almost got yourself killed and I don't want to test the old adage, 'the third time's the charm."

"Look, I'm not really interested in having my insides on my outside either, but you and Diggle are always doing dangerous things and I just sit behind this computer. I want to get into the action too. Besides you don't know anything about computers so how are you going to fake your way into an industry only computer convention?"

"I'll think about it," Oliver said noncommittally.

"You guys okay?" Diggle asked as he walked into the basement.

"Yeah, I'm fine, it's just really frustrating trying to talk to someone when they are acting like an arrogant jerk, you know the kind of person that always does what he wants and ignores offers of help."

"Wow, who's that because that guy sounds like a jackass." Oliver smirked.

"Go away from me now." Felicity waved her hands haphazardly in the air.

Oliver and Diggle turned to leave.

"Have fun storming the castle," Felicity yelled after them.

"What?"

"Never mind." Felicity dismissed them both with a large sigh. "Men."

XxxxxxxxxX

A few hours later Felicity moved around her kitchen in her giant night shirt, opening and closing drawers and cabinets getting things out in preparation for a late dinner. She was rummaging through the cutlery drawer searching for a vegetable peeler when the local news, playing in the background, caught her attention.

"…in other news, local business woman Amy Calley was found dead in her Starling City office earlier this evening. Although there was no signs of forced entry the police are treating her dead as suspicious. We will keep you updated as we learn more. In sports…."

"What…." Felicity muttered to herself when she heard a knock at the front door.

"Who is it?" Felicity called out.

"It's me," replied a familiar male voice.

Felicity jogged to the door to let Oliver in, her first thought was that it was nice progress that he was entering her apartment through the front door as opposed to the living room window. Her second thought was that Oliver looked…not good. He look tired, not bad per se, because honestly could the man ever truly look bad, but he looked exhausted and a little worn out, but who could blame him? What with playing multiple roles, when did he ever have time to just relax?

"Oliver, you don't look so good."

The stunned expression caused Felicity to giggle lightly. "What?"

"You," she repeated, "look tired. You look like a man who has not been sleeping because he has been too busy running a night club, helping his family, and patrolling the city at night to keep it safe. You know what you need?" she asked rhetorically, "You need a nice massage."

"A massage? You're offering to give me a massage? One with a happy ending I hope." Oliver smirked.

"If you play your cards right. Now, go get undressed, lie down on the bed, and let me do all the work."

Oliver did exactly as he instructed, walking down the hallway into Felicity's bedroom, stripping off his clothes as he went. Once in the bedroom, he folded his clothes and placed them on the seat of a chair.

A few moments later, Felicity walked into her bedroom with a bottle of baby oil and saw Oliver laying on the bed with his face turned into the wall, half buried in the comforter, and his eyes closed. The second she touched his skin she knew she didn't need to worry about warming the oil in her hands first; his flesh gave off enough heat. Her hands slide across his muscles, working the oil across the ridge of his shoulders and into the crook of his neck. She used her thumbs to push against the knots and tightness she found there, then stroked, kneaded, and manipulated each spot of his spine to ease his tension. He had a horrible amount of scars, they rippled beneath her fingers. Some were new, but most were old and she lightened her touch as she traced them across his back.

Felicity continued the massage, now at his waist, kneading her thumbs into the dimples at the small of his back. He let out a low, throaty growl of approval as she caressed his flesh. She spread more oil and molded her hands to the shape of his butt. She stroked the marble hard flesh and continued down into his thighs and claves. When she worked her hands into the arches of his feet, he groaned loudly and shifted on the bed.

Suddenly she felt his large muscular arms wrap around her waist, as he rolled so that she was pinned beneath him. Her oversized sleeping T-shirt bunched around her legs and he felt her body mold instinctively into his, her lithe legs parting and her pelvis arching up. Her hands reached up and cupped his face and she kissed him, hungry and needy; then more gently, she kissed his jaw, his chin, and the side of his mouth. Her nipples were taut against his chest, her breath hot and fast. She slid her hands down to rub herself against his throbbing erection. Her legs parted wide as she bent her knees, cradling him.

Felicity's hands were frantically stroking his naked back and her legs shifted restlessly, rubbing against him when he slipped his tongue between her lips and she sucked on him with an overwhelming need to possess him. In response, Oliver took her slim wrists in one of his large hands and pinned them over her head. She muttered a soft protest and her hips moved, rubbing against his crotch. Her nightgown was in his way so he released her wrists long enough to knot one fist in the material and lift it over her head to deposit it onto the bedroom floor.

Now with Felicity completely naked beneath him, Oliver pressed his face to her breasts and kissed the soft tips, his mouth open and wet. Felicity shifted so her puckered nipple brushed against his cheek until Oliver began to suckle, drawling her in deep, stroking with his tongue and nibbling with his teeth. The mewling noises she made were low and sexy. In response, his fingers slide over her tight curls, felt her slick and wet, hot and swollen and then he slid a finger deep inside her. She was incredibly tight and he added another finger, stretching her. He started a smooth rhythm, with his thumb gliding over her sensitive flesh while his mouth nibbled on her breasts until Felicity shuddered and the moaned out her release.

Oliver watched her intense pleasure expressed in her parted lips, dilated eyes, and the sweet sounds she was making until he was overcome with a need to be inside her, right now, to feel her body clasped tight around his erection just as it had been around his fingers. He bent down and pressed his mouth to her moist flesh, breathing in her scent, his tongue flicked out, stroking her. Then he spread her legs wide and pushed inside her. She was hot and so wet. Her small hands grasped his shoulders and held him close. He ground against her, his gaze holding hers, watching her eyes go hot and dark. She bit her bottom lip between her teeth as she rocked against him, meeting his rhythm and holding him tight. He slid his hands underneath her and cupped her bum, lifting her legs higher on his waist. He leaned down closer so that he could feel her nipples rub torturously against his chest, which only served to heighten his arousal. When she tightened her thighs, her internal muscles milked his erection which broke his control and forced his release in a low, rough endless growl.

After a few minutes, he realized he was probably crushing Felicity, but she didn't voice any complaints.

"You were right. I do feel a lot more relaxed now." He smiled against her skin.

"One day you'll learn that I'm always right."

TBC...


End file.
